'Mainers heard us': US voters restore tribal obligations to state constitution

Voters in US state of Maine have decided to restore long-removed language about Maine’s obligations to Native American tribes to the printed versions of its constitution.

Maine inherited the treaties from Massachusetts when it became its own state more than 200 years ago. The language still applies, but it was removed from the printed constitution in the 19th century.

Members of Maine’s Native American tribes and others have said the restoration of the language to the printed constitution would make clear the state’s obligations to Indigenous groups.

Maulian Bryant, Penobscot Nation ambassador and president of the Wabanaki Alliance, said that restoring the tribal treaties to the printed constitutions honours the tribes’ ancestors.

“It feels good that Mainers heard us and felt our message and agreed,” she said.

Here's what else was decided by voters:

New power company

Maine voters rejected the proposed takeover of two investor-owned utilities that distribute 97 percent of electricity in the state.

Voters opted for the status quo over a referendum that would have marked the first time a state with existing private utilities discarded them all at the same time.

The proposal called for dismantling Central Maine Power and Versant Power and creating a nonprofit utility called Pine Tree Power to govern the grid.

Supporters said there was little to lose because of the utilities’ poor performance. Critics said there’s no guarantee the nonprofit utility would perform any better, while the move could spark lawsuits and buying out the existing utilities could cost billions — as much as $13.5 billion.

Foreign election interference

Mainers voted to stop foreign government spending in local referendums, closing a loophole in federal election law that a Canadian utility giant exploited to protect its ventures in the state.

The Canadian-government-owned Hydro Quebec spent millions in a failed attempt to stop a proposal to halt a cross-border hydropower transmission project in which the utility stood to earn $10 billion.

Federal election law prevents foreign governments and entities from spending money to influence candidate elections, yet there’s no such ban covering state referendums.

With the approval, Maine becomes the 10th state to ban foreign spending in state ballot initiatives, said Aaron McKean, legal counsel for the nonprofit, nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center in Washington, DC.

Right to repair

Mainers approved a “right to repair” initiative designed to allow vehicle owners and independent repair shops access to on-board diagnostic systems in vehicles.

Massachusetts voters approved a right to repair proposal of their own in 2020. That proposal provided vehicle owners and independent repair shops with more access to mechanical data related to maintenance and repairs.

Out-of-state petitioners

Maine voters rejected a proposed amendment to the state constitution to take out provisions that require circulators of citizen’s initiatives to be state residents, but that follows guidance from federal courts that out-of-state circulators must be allowed.

The amendment's rejection will have no practical effect, Secretary of State Shenna Bellows said: “Even though I agree with the voters, my obligation under the constitution is to follow the direction of the courts.”